


Detroit Courier, Page C1

by bottlecapmermaid



Category: The Crow (1994)
Genre: Gen, newspaper fic, obituary fic, tagged with MCD because with the premise of the film Obviously
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-04
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-09-28 07:58:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10080344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bottlecapmermaid/pseuds/bottlecapmermaid
Summary: Two obituaries anonymously submitted to a Detroit newspaper, November of 1993.





	1. Shelley Marie Webster

Shelley Marie Webster

DETROIT - Shelley Marie Webster, 28, passed away on Oct. 31, 1993, at a local hospital as a result of injuries sustained in a brutal home invasion on Oct. 30, 1993, the day before her wedding. She was born on April 8, 1965, in Annapolis, MD, to Robert and Dorothy Webster. She was an activist for social and housing reform in the inner city of Detroit, where her latest focus was resisting unlawful evictions. Shelley loved music, all animals, and poetry.

 

Shelley graduated from a local high school, and attended the University of Maryland where she double majored in political science and literature. After graduation, she moved to Chicago, IL, to work for a non-profit placing immigrants in affordable housing. It was during this time that Shelley's passion for safe homes for children became the center of her efforts; she opened her small apartment to the children of families who could not look after them during work hours, and helped them with school work, making friends, practicing English, and having a chance to relax and be normal kids. 

 

While living in Chicago, Shelley met Eric Draven, a student at the University of Chicago who would later become her fiancé. After two years in Chicago, Shelley and Eric moved to Detroit. She continued working with both city government and individual families to eradicate unsafe living conditions, as well as school and extracurricular programs for inner city children. 

 

Never ones to separate life and work, Shelley and Eric lived in the same neighborhoods in which she worked, taking a loft in a building locally referred to as the Golgotha Tenement. The two were arranged to be married on Oct. 31, 1993.

 

Surviving Shelley are her parents Robert and Dorothy Webster, as well as a younger sister Lisa, several cousins, and a niece Nicole, whom Shelley adored, as well as her cat Gabriel. Preceding her in death are her grandparents, an uncle, and her fiancé Eric. She is already sorely missed by the numerous people she helped throughout her career, especially the children, and a special friend Sarah.

 

Services will be held at a later date. Burial will be in the Old Church Cemetery, Detroit. May your rest be as joyful as your life, Shelley, and infinitely longer.


	2. Eric Thomas Draven

Eric Thomas Draven

DETROIT - Eric Thomas Draven, 29, died on Oct. 30, 1993, in a violent break-in at his home. He was born on November 21, 1964, in Los Angeles, CA, to Anne and Scott Draven. He was the lead guitarist for the band Hangman’s Joke, as well as a music teacher at an inner city elementary school. 

Eric's interest in music began at a young age, and by the time he finished high school, he was the head of the school band. He majored in music education and theater, wrote his thesis on revenge in Jacobean drama, and went on to a Master’s program at the University of Chicago. 

While living in Chicago, Eric began working as a volunteer music teacher for underfunded city schools. He also began recording the music that would later be the foundation for Hangman’s Joke. His time in school settings was what led him to meet Shelley Webster, to whom he would later be engaged. 

Upon Eric's completion of his time at the University of Chicago, he and Shelley moved to Detroit, MI. There, he formed the rest of Hangman’s Joke and recorded the album Last Laugh, while continuing to teach in inner city schools. He and Shelley lived in the same neighborhood he taught in, as they both believed a community could not be changed exclusively by outside influence. They had planned to get married on Oct. 31, 1993. 

Eric is survived by his mother Anne, his sisters Sasha and Rita, and many aunts, uncles, and cousins, in addition to his cat Gabriel. He was predeceased by his father Scott, his aunt Emily, an infant nephew Alejandro, and his fiancée Shelley. The world of music has lost one of its most zealous advocates in his death.

Memorial services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to help defray the burial expenses. Interment will be at the Old Church Cemetery, Detroit. Rest in peace, as you did not in life.


End file.
